Daniel's fists were clenched as his head slowly tilted up. His watery red eyes looked deep into mine as he struggled to tell me something.
"Daniel... I'm getting worried. What is it?" I questioned, caressing his cheek.
"I'm overreacting." He sniffed and cleaned off the shedded tears. "It's just... Benny died."
"Benny?" I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.
"My dog that's been living with my dad." He explained. "He's been with us since I was six. He died."
"Daniel, you scared me." I sighed and rested against the bench.
"Sorry." He said as he cupped his face in his hands and rubbed. "He's been with me through thick and thin and it's such a huge shocker. I didn't know where else to vent my sorrow without being embarrassed... so I came to you."
____________________________________
After a pleasant and calming stroll in the park with Daniel, I returned to my anguishing dungeon of a home. My father, mother and I had an intervention. Well, I was forced to join.
I found out that my parents had filed for a divorce a few months ago. My father had planned to move out in the next month but apparently, they just didn't have the heart to break the news to me yet. I didn't think they had a heart at all. It was such a cruel thing to inflict upon your children, or atleast I felt that way.
It was heartbreaking to even think that your father doesn't love your mother anymore. Maybe he didn't even love me anymore. What kind of parent could stand being away from their children?
My heart was drenched in a newfound misery.
I had no choice but to go through with it. After all, whatever I said or did wouldn't make a difference.
After the long, agonizing discussion with my parents, I rushed up to my room and locked myself in it. I didn't want to speak to them anymore and I needed some peace of mind.
I stripped out of my heavy sweater and skinnies before stepping onto the cold, glossy tiles in the bathroom. A good, rejuvenating bath always clears the mind.
I tiptoed into the chilly porcelain bathtub and sunk myself in the newly suffused water. I let the small waves on the surface brush past my arms as I rested my head on the brim of the tub.
I gradually shut my eyes and when there was only pitch-darkness, I was reminded again of Harry. I needed to be occupied with something or I was constantly being haunted by silly thoughts of him.
Something inside me was aching knowing that I would never be with him and I hated myself for it. Why did I have to be so weak? I should never have let him get to me like this.
But I missed him.
I missed how he always used to send me cheeky text messages and I would always tell him off when inside, I was enjoying it. I missed how he daunted and flirted with me at the same time. I chuckled to myself as I reminisced. I wished my heart would stop tormenting me already.
A blustering sound brought me back to reality. I opened my dazy eyes to the sight of my mobile phone vibrating vigorously on the tray of the tub. I stretched my dripping, wet arm over and snatched it.
"Hello?" I answered.
"Oh my god!" Lindsey squealed.
"I think I might be deaf now."
"Oh sorry but this is important!" She sounded so excited I could picture her jumping about. "Oh, how are you by the way? How are you dealing with um... you know..."
"My parents?" I sighed. "Quite alright. Anyway, what is it?"
"Polly's preggers!" She shrieked.
"I knew it!"
"You did?"
"Yeah, I saw her at the clinic and I knew something was up." I told her as I twirled the tip of my fingers around in the still water. "She told you, huh? Did she say who the father is?"
"Yes! This is the most shocking part."
"Alright. Who is it?"
"Josh." She answered.
I couldn't believe what I'd heard. When and how did this happen?
"Oh crap." I enthused. "Aren't you kind of... mad?"
"No. Josh and I broke up ages ago and never had any real feelings for him anyway." I was surprised by her calmness.
____________________________
"Becareful, honey." My mother told me through the phone.
Cuppo Cafe, the biggest hotspot for teens in Gripleville, was having a cupcake-dominated event to commemorate Earth Hour. They were going to turn off all the lights at 8pm for an hour to raise awareness about the need to take action on climate change.
Surprisingly, my mother wanted me to go out and socialize more with people. She was afraid I'd turn into a mindless zombie before school started again. But it had already happened... or atleast it felt that way.
I tagged along to the event with Lindsey and her mother, Angela. The short drive there was filled with us freaking out over Josh being the father of Polly's baby. But we were careful not to let Angela know what we were talking about or she'd go and blurt it out to Polly's parents.
Daniel sent me several text messages almost begging to let him meet me. He seemed desperate to be with me every minute of the day... which was unusual. His pleas were so distinct. I did want to be with him too and I did spend as much time as I could with him but something just didn't feel right. Somehow, I felt that we couldn't be completely open and honest with each other like before and it made me feel slightly uncomfortable around him.
By the time we arrived, the sun was already setting. It rendered the expansive sky an alluring shade of magneta. White party tents were pitched up outside the crowded cafe and people were playing all sorts of games. I could tell from the familiar faces that a lot of them were from my school. I was afraid I'd bump into Harry. Daniel told me he'd be helping out.
Chatterings of the youngsters and the booming music made up the noisy ambience. Lindsey and I pushed through the blusterous crowds while Angela stayed outside to talk to some parents.
"Red velvet!" Lindsey almost yelled when she saw the workers giving out free mini cupcakes. She pulled me towards the long queue.
"Are you sure you wanna wait that long for some free mini cakes?" I let out a small laugh.
"Well, it's free. And it's red velvet!"
My attention was diverted away from the cupcakes when I saw Harry having a laugh with a group of friends right by the cupcake stall. He soon noticed me and looked over with a cheeky smirk.
"Helena... why are you blushing?" Lindsey teased when she noticed us exchanging glances.
"What? No, I'm not." I nudged her.
The butterflies in my stomach began to act up when Harry started making his way over to us. God, why can't he just leave me alone for once?
"Hello, ladies." He greeted as he slid his hands in his pockets.
"Well, hello Harry." Lindsey chuckled.
He smiled at Lindsey before tilting his head to the side to meet my eyes while I kept my head down. "Hi, Helena." He greeted once more.
I replied with a simple, "Hi."
"So what are you guys up to?" He enquired.
"We're just waiting in line for free cupcakes." Lindsey answered.
"If you went up to the stall and flirted with those guys, you wouldn't have to wait here." I suggested.
"Naughty girl." Harry smiled.
"Sorry about your dog." I changed the topic. "Daniel told me about him."
"What?"
"Your dog, Benny. He died right?"
"We've never had a dog."
